I have not watched Extant yet. I'm recording the whole season first. But you may wish to see how the guide handles 8/20, since there will be two "new" episodes. I expect the TiVo guide to fail, but I need to wait a few days to check.

Thanks for the heads up about Extant on 8/20... I checked my guide, and it was not scheduled to record, but it was due to a conflict. I had Brooklyn Taxi and another show set to record in the same time slot as the second Extant episode. I kept Brooklyn Taxi and dropped the other show so I could set it for Extant. Keeping fingers crossed...

You never know where the LIMIT is until you EXCEED it... Dianne B. "Let's try that again... without the oops." (Will Smith and Jeff Goldblum in "Independence Day")

A rotor assumes that the user knows or perceives that the physical act of turning the antenna will result in reception of a set of OTA channels in one direction and a different set of OTA channels in a different direction.

A DVR+ has 2 tuners. (For the sake of argument, lets assume the DVR+ does have a means to tell the rotor to turn.) It is likely that at some time someone in the household will want to watch a channel that is received at a different direction from a channel that is being recorded. The most likely result will be that the recording will not work. This is because that someone had the rotor turn to the channel they wanted to watch and away for the channel to be recorded. Most people who use a DVR+ will not be savvy enough (nor should they) to understand what has happened. As a user, we want it to just work.

Thus, a rotor is not practical for any OTA device that has more than one tuner. If the user needs to record and watch channels at different physical antenna directions, they need an antenna and DVR+ for each direction that contains a set of OTA channels the user is interested in accessing.

Definition: "set of OTA channels" would be one or more over-the-air (OTA) television channels received when an antenna that is pointed in a specific direction. This does not mean any or all of the OTA channels must be in that specific direction. It does mean the antenna does receive them to such a degree that the signal is enjoyable by the viewer.

Hope this helps. Sorry to be so wordy. Unfortunately, simple concepts get lost in technical details by some contributors.

A rotor assumes that the user knows or perceives that the physical act of turning the antenna will result in reception of a set of OTA channels in one direction and a different set of OTA channels in a different direction.

A DVR+ has 2 tuners. (For the sake of argument, lets assume the DVR+ does have a means to tell the rotor to turn.) It is likely that at some time someone in the household will want to watch a channel that is received at a different direction from a channel that is being recorded. The most likely result will be that the recording will not work. This is because that someone had the rotor turn to the channel they wanted to watch and away for the channel to be recorded. Most people who use a DVR+ will not be savvy enough (nor should they) to understand what has happened. As a user, we want it to just work.

Thus, a rotor is not practical for any OTA device that has more than one tuner. If the user needs to record and watch channels at different physical antenna directions, they need an antenna and DVR+ for each direction that contains a set of OTA channels the user is interested in accessing.

Definition: "set of OTA channels" would be one or more over-the-air (OTA) television channels received when an antenna that is pointed in a specific direction. This does not mean any or all of the OTA channels must be in that specific direction. It does mean the antenna does receive them to such a degree that the signal is enjoyable by the viewer.

Hope this helps. Sorry to be so wordy. Unfortunately, simple concepts get lost in technical details by some contributors.

Indeed. I do have a rotor connected to my antenna system, along with a DVR+. I use the rotor to occasionally watch Houston stations (looking southwest) when the conditions are favorable. I just have to remember to turn it back to our local stations (looking east) when I am done so I won't miss something I want to record...

I am thinking of installing a dedicated antenna for Houston stations with an A/B switch bypassing the DVR+. I do not watch "TV" through the DVR+, as I use the HDTV tuner when I am just watching. The DVR+ is used only for guide data and watching recorded programming.

I just received the recommended remotes (bought 2 of them) in the mail today. Works perfectly!! Paired with the DVR right out of the box, and paired just as easily with the TV. I highly appreciate the lead on this being a compatible remote for my Channel Master 7000PAL DVR. Couldn't be happier!

Hey everyone, quick question. I'm so close to cutting my cable cord as they've just raised my bill and when I called them to discuss the matter the person I talked to tried to make me feel pumped that I wasn't still getting the special extended to me but I was still getting great service. But I'm like really? I'm paying $100.00 a month and only watching what, seven channels on a regular basis?

So lurking around the tech and infortainment websites I heard about Channel Master and their DVR's. Combined with going internet like a Roku or a smart Blueray player I think it might be time to end my cable. However that brings me to my problem. I not above replacing my television, but I have an older tv that predates HDMI and only has one coaxil cable jack. I've been thinking of using an HDMI adapter that will change the signal coming out of the Channel Master DVR to something I can plug into the RCA jacks in my VCR or other switch type device that can then be used by my television. I've since seen them for sale on Amazon.

Channel Master said that people have used them before but really doesn't have any information about them. I was wondering how successfully they've been used by folks? Is it worth it or is it just better to replace the television. Like I said, I'm not above it but would rather not have to shell out the cash for a new flat screen if what I've got works just fine...

Hey everyone, quick question. I'm so close to cutting my cable cord as they've just raised my bill and when I called them to discuss the matter the person I talked to tried to make me feel pumped that I wasn't still getting the special extended to me but I was still getting great service. But I'm like really? I'm paying $100.00 a month and only watching what, seven channels on a regular basis?

So lurking around the tech and infortainment websites I heard about Channel Master and their DVR's. Combined with going internet like a Roku or a smart Blueray player I think it might be time to end my cable. However that brings me to my problem. I not above replacing my television, but I have an older tv that predates HDMI and only has one coaxil cable jack. I've been thinking of using an HDMI adapter that will change the signal coming out of the Channel Master DVR to something I can plug into the RCA jacks in my VCR or other switch type device that can then be used by my television. I've since seen them for sale on Amazon.

Channel Master said that people have used them before but really doesn't have any information about them. I was wondering how successfully they've been used by folks? Is it worth it or is it just better to replace the television. Like I said, I'm not above it but would rather not have to shell out the cash for a new flat screen if what I've got works just fine...

If your tv set doesn't even have a Component input, you'd be much better off spending $400 or so and getting a new flat screen tv set that has proper inputs.

A tv set that only has a single rca video jack input is 'Composite' analog video, which is not HD. HDMI (digital signal) and Component (analog signal) is HD quality signal. There are adapters for HDMI to Component that work well (I've used one), but I'm not so sure about HDMI to Composite adapters (never used one myself).

If your TV doesn't support HD, you'd be better off getting a VCR and a DTV converter box to record TV than buying an HD DVR and an adapter to downscale the image for your screen. There's also no point in buying a Blu-ray player for an SDTV, since the extra resolution is Blu-ray's only benefit over DVD (aside from having 7.1 surround sound channels, instead of 5.1). If you want the benefits of HDTV accessories, you'll need an HDTV to take advantage of them.

I not above replacing my television, but I have an older tv that predates HDMI and only has one coaxil cable jack.

If your TV has an RF coax input as its only input jack it is not just old, it is ancient. If you are going to be saving $100/month by cutting the cable, you should have no problem buying a decent HDTV. If you don't want to replace an ancient CRT then do as Aleron has suggested and buy one of those $40 CECB's off eBay to plug into your VCR. Anything else would be a waste of money if you run it into that display.

- kelson h

The bitterness of poor quality lasts long after the sweetness of the low price is forgotten . . . life is too short to drink bad wine

I not above replacing my television, but I have an older tv that predates HDMI and only has one coaxil cable jack. I've been thinking of using an HDMI adapter that will change the signal coming out of the Channel Master DVR to something I can plug into the RCA jacks in my VCR or other switch type device that can then be used by my television.

I hate replacing something that still works, but I'd replace the TV. If you cut the cord you'll be saving about $1200/year. For about 1/3 of that you can get a decent 40" or so flat-screen LCD.

Now, admittedly, by the time you buy TV + DVR+ + BD Player with streaming, you'll be up to about your annual cable bill, but it'll be a one-time charge, as opposed to every year. If you don't want to be able to play DVDs/BDs, I'd recommend a Roku 3 instead of the BD player.

Hey everyone, quick question. I'm so close to cutting my cable cord as they've just raised my bill and when I called them to discuss the matter the person I talked to tried to make me feel pumped that I wasn't still getting the special extended to me but I was still getting great service. But I'm like really? I'm paying $100.00 a month and only watching what, seven channels on a regular basis?

So lurking around the tech and infortainment websites I heard about Channel Master and their DVR's. Combined with going internet like a Roku or a smart Blueray player I think it might be time to end my cable. However that brings me to my problem. I not above replacing my television, but I have an older tv that predates HDMI and only has one coaxil cable jack. I've been thinking of using an HDMI adapter that will change the signal coming out of the Channel Master DVR to something I can plug into the RCA jacks in my VCR or other switch type device that can then be used by my television. I've since seen them for sale on Amazon.

Channel Master said that people have used them before but really doesn't have any information about them. I was wondering how successfully they've been used by folks? Is it worth it or is it just betterr to replace the television. Like I said, I'm not above it but would rather not have to shell out the cash for a new flat screen if what I've got works just fine...

One other word of caution before buying a new HDTV... Do you have any idea what reception you might have for OTA signals? Do you have an antenna? Do you know how far you are from wanted stations? Have you done a tvfool.com report showing what you might expect? Are you able to erect an outdoor antenna if need be? All this needs to be explored before cutting the cord...

One other word of caution before buying a new HDTV... Do you have any idea what reception you might have for OTA signals? Do you have an antenna? Do you know how far you are from wanted stations? Have you done a tvfool.com report showing what you might expect? Are you able to erect an outdoor antenna if need be? All this needs to be explored before cutting the cord...

You make a very good point. It is easy to assume that people coming here to chat about cord-cutting have already done their basic homework and are here to explore the various DVR options. We're seeing in a number of threads, that is often not the case.

Depending on your VCR it may not be possible to use it as a RF modulator like your wanting to do. I agree with most others that your TV, while still working, really needs to go. If money is a major concern then you can find very cheap 32" 720p LED TVs starting ~$130 or a more major brand like Samsung 720p for ~$200. Personally I think you'd be better off with something like a name brand 40" 1080p TV ~$400 but it's up to you. Note coming from a 4:3 tube TV you need to know that for the same vertical height as a 26" 4:3 CRT you'd probably need at least a 32" 16:9 TV since sizes are diagonal, you can never really be too large, no one ever complains about a TV being too big, as long as it fits in the space you have

If you don't mind a bit of tinkering or just want to test the waters, something like a $40 iView(plus USB HDD) can tune and record HD and it also has a RF output for your ancient TV, it's basically a digital VCR

Hi everyone! We bought a DVR+ this week and it looks like it is having trouble connecting to the internet. We have the bundle with wireless adapter. It says the wireless is connected, but the internet is not. The guide does not update regularly and we can't use vudu. Any ideas to help? We do not have an external hard drive, but will be adding one tomorrow. Could that be the problem? I checked our wireless router's control website and it shows the DVR+ as connected.

Hey thanks for the information you and everyone else. Yeah I'm also leaning towards replacing my ancient tube with a new shiny flatscreen. It just sucks to do so cause my existing television has been so good to me, but sometimes you've gotta do what you've gotta do I guess. I've always hated replacing well enough working devices is all (you should see my stereo!) But its definetly gotta beat trying to mess with switch boxes and adaptors cause all that will be built into the new flatscreen which'll have multiple inputs as well.

But maybe it'll be a wash. I mean once my brother and I were moving my father, who's elderly, from where he lived which was far away from us to an apartment closer to us. I only to happily accept the offer of his exceedingly large and old rear projection television (we needed a pick-up truck to move it). Once I got it home I only to happily donated it to a charity that would come and pick it up. I then took a charitable donation that year for my efforts on my taxes and saved a couple of hundreds. So there's the possibilty of using one to in effect pay for the other...

Oh and yes, my VCR works just fine as an RF Modulator. It's a Panasonic VCR/DVD player/recorder with digital tuner and dual RCA inputs in addition to the coaxil output. Before that I was using a Sharp VCR. It's just a matter of what plugs into what from the DVR to the VCR but I also do understand that sometimes it's just better to give it up and update everything.

Hi everyone! We bought a DVR+ this week and it looks like it is having trouble connecting to the internet. We have the bundle with wireless adapter. It says the wireless is connected, but the internet is not. The guide does not update regularly and we can't use vudu. Any ideas to help? We do not have an external hard drive, but will be adding one tomorrow. Could that be the problem? I checked our wireless router's control website and it shows the DVR+ as connected.

I know this is a simple thing, but did you provide your DVR+ with the correct password for your wireless router?

Hey thanks for the information you and everyone else. Yeah I'm also leaning towards replacing my ancient tube with a new shiny flatscreen. It just sucks to do so cause my existing television has been so good to me, but sometimes you've gotta do what you've gotta do I guess. I've always hated replacing well enough working devices is all (you should see my stereo!) But its definetly gotta beat trying to mess with switch boxes and adaptors cause all that will be built into the new flatscreen which'll have multiple inputs as well.

But maybe it'll be a wash. I mean once my brother and I were moving my father, who's elderly, from where he lived which was far away from us to an apartment closer to us. I only to happily accept the offer of his exceedingly large and old rear projection television (we needed a pick-up truck to move it). Once I got it home I only to happily donated it to a charity that would come and pick it up. I then took a charitable donation that year for my efforts on my taxes and saved a couple of hundreds. So there's the possibilty of using one to in effect pay for the other...

Oh and yes, my VCR works just fine as an RF Modulator. It's a Panasonic VCR/DVD player/recorder with digital tuner and dual RCA inputs in addition to the coaxil output. Before that I was using a Sharp VCR. It's just a matter of what plugs into what from the DVR to the VCR but I also do understand that sometimes it's just better to give it up and update everything.

When you go shopping for a new TV, make sure it has plenty of inputs, especially HDMI's. Go with a model that has more than you think you'll need, since they can fill up fast. I've seen some lower-end flat-screens with a minimal number of inputs. Such a TV would put you right back where you were, with switch boxes and adapters.

When you go shopping for a new TV, make sure it has plenty of inputs, especially HDMI's. Go with a model that has more than you think you'll need, since they can fill up fast. I've seen some lower-end flat-screens with a minimal number of inputs. Such a TV would put you right back where you were, with switch boxes and adapters.

Analog inputs are getting rare on new HDTV's and you may not generally find more than 2-3 HDMI inputs. As flat panels get thinner, the speakers they put in them suck more and more so it is assumed people will either use an AVR or soundbar to augment the display. Those devices will have all the AV inputs for the additional components and lead a single HDMI out to the display. AVR's generally have 6 HDMI inputs.

- kelson h

The bitterness of poor quality lasts long after the sweetness of the low price is forgotten . . . life is too short to drink bad wine

Just dumped cable, and purchased (and received) DVR+ 16GB Bundle with HDMI cable and wifi adapter through Amazon.
Located around 30 miles outside Chicago, and had OTA antenna in attic already.
Set-up went well. Rovi Guide and interface and DVR recording interface/functionality is intuitive and nice, at least so far. Tuner found all but 1 channel that the TV found (and the channel not found was around a 30 - 35 Signal Strength on my TV, which for me, is barely visible and contains a lot of jumping and pixilation). Picture quality is excellent.

The interface was pretty similar to my cable DVR. Guide was nice going out 14 days. Recorded two back-to-back programs of same name, and the program name appears in the DVR Recordings menu with the number of episodes of that program. Selecting the program brings up the individual episodes. I like this feature, that I'm guessing most DVRs have, as it clutters up the 'DVR recordings' menu less.
Programmed my Logitech Harmony 700 remote with DVR+ (listed as CM-7500 for those that didn't know) and it works well with the Harmony 700.

Attached a Seagate3TB Backup Plus HD (SRD00F2), and appears to work without incident (time will tell). This should give me approx. 480 Hrs of HD recording looking at the specs.

Updated to 108R firmware. Still have some lag between remote button press and commands for whatever reason- really the only disappointment for me right now, but not a deal breaker. The lag is present regardless of whether using factory remote or Logitech Harmony remote.

Hopefully I'm as excited about the DVR+ in a month, as an OTA DVR (without having to pay a monthly fee for a guide) was my main desire when I purchased this. I'd prefer three tuners, but a coax splitter will allow me to use the TV tuner should I wish to view a third station while two others are recording. And, I suppose if it is really that important, I can go back to VCR/Recordable DVD with digital tuner to record a third channel should I get desperate... Hoping the ROVI guide stays available for a long time, and lack of it would be the deal-breaker in my mind (it'd be back to manually programming for specific time slots, which I'm guessing can be done with the DVR+).

Also like that I can rewind live TV. And, when watching a channel, say for 10 minutes, and then deciding it would have been a good program to record, recording the program will reach back into the buffer and record back to those 10- minutes before the recording decision was made and requested. I'm glad they included this feature.

When displaying guide, five channels appear, and can move up/down channels using arrow keys, or forward in time by up to a day at a time for the five channels showing. Guide is also searchable.
Guide Surfing question:
If displaying guide, I can go up or down one channel at a time using arrows keys. Is there any way to skip up or down through a screen of the guide (i.e., up/down 5 channels) at a time- essentially a page up / page down feature?
- Edited to say that the remote has a page up/page down feature- I didn't even notice it! Edited after Russel's Post 4445, so that people not following the complete thread will see that this feature is there...

Just mentioning because not everyone may try. I have a beam antenna (not Omni-directional) in my attic, aimed at Chicago from 25 miles away. I get a decent number of channels, but the directionality would cause a few of the channels to come in poorly because they weren't in the beam's antenna pattern.

Because I'm so close to Chicago, I decided to use the beam backwards (I receive stations off the back side of the beam). The reach isn't as much (but sufficient for 25 miles), but less focused (i.e., wider beam-pattern). As such, I get all the stations I desire with good signal strength...

Ok, I have another question. Do you have to use a Seagate brand external hard drive? The hard drive we ordered came in and the DVR+ doesn't seem to recognize it. I plugged it in to my laptop and it says to unplug the device so I think it's not working. I am just wondering because I might just run to the store to get a different brand to try out.

Ok, I have another question. Do you have to use a Seagate brand external hard drive? The hard drive we ordered came in and the DVR+ doesn't seem to recognize it. I plugged it in to my laptop and it says to unplug the device so I think it's not working. I am just wondering because I might just run to the store to get a different brand to try out.

You don't have to use a Seagate drive, but CM has tested and recommends several Seagate drives. A number of people have used Western Digital drives without any problems. What make and model of drive do you have?

You said the DVR+ doesn't seem to recognize your drive. When you connect a new USB drive to the DVR+, the first thing it does is reformat the drive to a Linux (non Windows compatible) format, so that would explain why your laptop doesn't recognize the drive now.

The DVR+ User Guide says "If your external disk cannot be detected by DVR+ software or is not working correctly, first try the Check Disk option on the DVR Setup submenu of the DVR menu. This will reboot the drive."

You don't have to use a Seagate drive, but CM has tested and recommends several Seagate drives. A number of people have used Western Digital drives without any problems. What make and model of drive do you have?

You said the DVR+ doesn't seem to recognize your drive. When you connect a new USB drive to the DVR+, the first thing it does is reformat the drive to a Linux (non Windows compatible) format, so that would explain why your laptop doesn't recognize the drive now.

The DVR+ User Guide says "If your external disk cannot be detected by DVR+ software or is not working correctly, first try the Check Disk option on the DVR Setup submenu of the DVR menu. This will reboot the drive."

Thanks so much for your help! I will go try that. I am using a Macbook and it says it is taking too much power.

We bought a Bipra 160 gb hard drive. I tried rebooting the drive and it still says the memory is 25% full. I think this thing is not working properly.

Thanks so much for your help! I will go try that. I am using a Macbook and it says it is taking too much power.

We bought a Bipra 160 gb hard drive. I tried rebooting the drive and it still says the memory is 25% full. I think this thing is not working properly.

It look like you and a number of others who bought this drive from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk have had serious problems with it. I also read several positive five star "reviews" that didn't sound too credible. This one titled "Good but not without issues" does sound credible: http://www.amazon.co.uk/review/R13ZY...R13ZYTP7SKP1PI . I suggest you either get one of the recommend Seagate drives or an equivalent Western Digital drive.